Clothes hamper



July 21, 1959 E. FRAGALE 2,895,782

CLOTHES HAMPER Filed June 13, 1956 29'- 3 l I i United States Qfiice 2,895,782 Patented July 21, 1959 2,895,782 CLOTHES HAMPER Eleanor M. Fragale, St. Louis, Mo.

1 Claim. 01. 312-296 This invention relates to a clothes hamper specifically for use in connection with a family washing machine of a fixed, known capacity. The term capacity is used herein to designate the optimum washing capacity rather than the maximum weight capacity of a washing machine. The capacity of a washing machine to wash lightly soiled linens, for example, is quite difierent from its capacity to thoroughly clean heavily soiled work clothes and the like. This application is a continuation as to common subject matter of my application Serial No. 433,586, filed June 1, 1954, now. abandoned.

Clothes hampers known heretofore have generally been simply baskets of wicker, wood, or metal, in which all of the clothes of a family have been deposited as the clothes became soiled. When the family wash was to be done, the clothes .Were removed from the hamper, sorted, and washed in approximately equal loads, which might or might not have. any relation to theoptimum washing capacity of the washing machine, Thishas. been a. time-consuming and ineflicient system. "Particularly with the advent; ofthe automatic washer, it has been feasible to run loads of washing at intervalsfduring'a Week, instead of waiting for a weekly washday; 'Howevenf the clothes hampers known heretofore havenot' been adapted to this system, since theclothe ,must be re sorted each time, and there has been no convenient way to determine whether it was' worthwhile running a load, unless, forv example, it happenedtobe sheet-changing day' or, the like. i i I One of the objects of this invention-is to provide, a clothes hamper which is so. arranged as to indicate when a proper load of aparticular kind of clothes has accumulated, for a family-washing -machine of 'a given kn'own capabits A... 1' i I? .3,

Another object of this invention is to provide a means for classifying clothes as they are put into the hamper.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a hamper which is so constructed as to be simple and economical to manufacture and more convenient to load and unload than hampers known heretofore.

Other objects will become apparent to those skilled in the art in the light of the following disclosure and accompanying drawing.

In accordance with this invention, generally stated, a clothes hamper is provided which is compartmented in such a way that, when a compartment is full of a designated kind of soiled clothes, the compartment contains a proper load of that kind of clothes for a family washing machine of a given known capacity.

The hamper is so constructed as to provide a plurality of open-topped containers in the upper part of the hamper, and at least one larger container in the lower part of the hamper for the reception of whites, by which is meant linens, towels, sheets and the like, white and fast colored clothes. The containers are preferably provided with indicia of the kinds of wash to be deposited in each one.

In the drawing, Figure 1 is a view in front elevation of a clothes hamper constructed in accordance with one embodiment of this invention;

Figure 2 is a view in side elevation of the clothes hamper of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a top plan view, partly broken away, of the hamper of Figure l;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 44 of Figure 1;

' Figure 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 1;

. Figure 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 66 of Figure l, but with one of the lower compartment doors in partly opened position; v

c Figure 7 is a view in perspective of the hamper, showing the top and one lower compartment door in open position; and

Figure 8 is a fragmentary sectional view showing a lower compartment door in open position.

, Referring now to the drawing for an illustrative embodiment of this invention, reference numeral lindicates a clothes hamper of this invention. The hamper 1 is provided with a base 3, sides 5, a back 7, a fixed horizontal partition 9, an upper front panel 11 and a mullion 13 extending betweenthe base 3 and the panel 11, making up a rectangular cabinet. A center section of theback 7 and of the front panel 11 are corrugated to provide corresponding parallelverticalbhannels 15 in which rigid partitions 20 are removably; mounted. A cover21 is hinged at 23 to the back'17. I i

In 'the embodiments shown, four upper compartments 16"are provided. The upper compartments 16 are opentopped. Their front and back walls are provided by the front wall or panel 11 and the back wall 7, respectively, of the cabinet, and their bottom wall, by the horizontal partition 9. 1

, -Two. lower compartments 25 and 27 are defined and separated by a lower vertical partition 26, extending between the mullion 13 and the back wal1..7, and between the horizontal partition 9 and a floor 30 of the base 3. The front opening of each of the compartments 25 and 27 vis closed by a door 28, hinged at 29 along its bottom edge'to the front edge of the'base 3. Triangular sides 32 extend from the doors- 28 into the compartments 25 and 27 when the doors are closed, and form side extensions to'p'revent clothes from spilling out when the doors are open. Each triangular side 32 is provided with a stop 33 which, in the open position, either engages the inside surface of the mullion 13 or a lip on the side 5 as shown in Figure 6. Each of the doors 28 is provided with a handle 35.

Indicia plates 39 are provided on or adjacent each compartment to designate the kind of clothes to be deposited in each different compartment. The designations may also be applied by means of decalcomanias, or by embossing, or in any other suitable manner. However, the use of demountable plates permits the substitution of various designations to fit the needs of a particular family.

The size of the various compartments is of controlling importance, and depends upon the size of the washing machine in connection with which it is used. To some extent, the size of the upper compartments may be modified in accordance with the size of the family, its constitution, and the habits of its members. For example, in a family consisting of an office worker, his wife and three children, the compartmentation of a hamper as shown has been found entirely satisfactory. When the weight capacity of the washing machine with which it is used is approximately nine pounds, a hamper thirty-two inches high, twenty-five inches wide and thirteen inches deep, with a one inch high base 3, one inch wide mullion 13,

with the four upper compartments approximately six inches wide and twelve inches high, and with the lower compartments approximately eleven inches wide, seventeen inches high and thirteen inches deep has been found satisfactory.

For a family in which more work clothes are used, it may be found desirable to use two compartments (each representing a machine load) for work clothes. If the work clothes are not heavily soiled, it may be found desirable to remove the partition between the compartments marked Dark and Work in the illustrative embodiment shown. The proportions of the compartments shown are based on the assumption that the colors of the dark clothes are not fast, and that the work clothes are heavily soiled.

The compartments 25 and 27 are each designed to hold exactly one machine load of the bulky white and color fast items (sheets, shirts, table linens, towels, handkerchiefs, underwear and other colorfast cottons) which comprise the bulk of the family wash. In large families, where more than two loads of such clothes may have to be stored, a third or fourth lower compartment may be added, each holding a machine load.

Depending upon the climate and the habits of the family, the top sections may also be given other designations such as silks and light clothes, fiannels and woolens, dark clothes and work clothes; or silks and light clothes, dark clothes and (two compartments) work clothes; or (two compartments) silks and light clothes, dark clothes and work clothes, etc.

Numerous variations in the construction of the hamper within the scope of the appended claims will become apparent to those skilled in the art in the light of the foregoing description. For example, while the bottom compartments of the embodiment shown open separately, they may be made to open together. The lower containers may take the form of bins, hinged at their front. edge and open at their tops, or drawers, sliding on rails. The lower doors may also be pivoted vertically at one side, and provided with a pie-shaped bin attached to the door itself, to swing out when the door is opened. The embodiment shown offers a number of advantages, in simplicity of construction and ease of use over these alternatives. In any event the front wall of the lower compartment is forwardly extendable.

Other arrangements of the upper compartments are also contemplated. The corrugated section may be replaced with simple rabbets in an otherwise plane panel, in which the partitions may be slid.

more easily be cleaned, and adjustment can be made for different characters of soil, materials and family size, as

It is desirable to. make the partitions removable because the hamper may has been explained. The corrugated section offers a simple method of providing channels and at the same time facilitates cleaning and adjustment. The partitions are preferably rigid, to eliminate dovetailing of wash in adjacent compartments.

By providing a designated compartment for each different kind of clothes, the hamper of this invention permits the proper classification of the clothes to be made when they are deposited in the hamper. Thus, the work of sorting through a heterogeneous pile of dirty laundry is eliminated. At the same time, a simple but infallable indication is given when a machine load of any kind of clothes has accumulated.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

In conjunction with a family wash machine having a fixed, known, optimum capacity for various kinds of wash, a laundry classifying and load measuring hamper comp ising a rectangular cabinet having fixed front, back and sid.'walls',.said cabinet having a plurality of open-topped upper compartmentshaving front, back, side and bottom walls, the'front and back walls of said compartments being common with the fixed front and back walls of the cabinet and at least one of the sides of each of said upper compartments being defined by, a removably mounted vertical partition extending between said front and back walls; and a plurality of lower compartments immediately beneath the said upper compartments, the bottom wall of the upper compartments constituting a top, closure for the lower compartments, each of said lower compartments having a forwardly extendable front wall, hinged at its bottom to tilt forwardly, said lower compartments being substantially larger than the individual upper compartments and being designated for the reception of whites, each of said compartments being designated, for the reception of a particular kind of laundry and being of a capacity to hold a single wash machine load vofthe particularly designated kind of laundry, whereby, when one of said compartments is full of the particular kind of laundry, it is immediately apparent'that a proper optimum load for the family wash machineis available.

; References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 781,676 Putt Feb. 7, 1905 2,521,572 Eckel et al. Sept. 5, 1950 2,747,959 Ingelson May 29, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 319,288 France Mar. 4, 1902 351,843 Great Britain July 2, 1931 

